Towards a greater engagement of universities in addressing climate change challenges

Many higher education institutions around the world are engaged in efforts to tackle climate change. This takes place by not only reducing their own carbon footprint but also by educating future leaders and contributing valuable research and expertise to the global effort to combat climate change. However, there is a need for studies that identify the nature of their engagement on the topic, and the extent to which they are contributing towards addressing the many problems associated with climate change. Against this background, this paper describes a study that consisted of a review of the literature and the use of case studies, which outline the importance of university engagement in climate change and describe its main features. The study identified the fact that even though climate change is a matter of great relevance to universities, its coverage in university programmes is not as wide as one could expect. Based on the findings, the paper also lists the challenges associated with the inclusion of climate change in university programmes. Finally, it describes some of the measures which may be deployed in order to maximise the contribution of higher education towards handling the challenges associated with a changing climate.


Methods
The objective of this study is to find out what climate change-related themes and topics have been pursued by universities.One way to answer this question is to examine publications that have focused on issues related to climate change education and research programs and initiatives in academic institutions.For this purpose, we relied on bibliometric analysis techniques as they can highlight key terms that have been used in the literature and their interactions.Various software tools such as CiteSpace, SciMAT, and VOSviewer are available for bibliometric analysis.Here, we used the latter as its term co-occurrence maps are more detailed and easier to interpret 22,23 .The input data for bibliometric analysis can be obtained from academic literature databases such as Scopus and the Web of Science.In this study, we used the Web of Science for its reputation to index quality peer-reviewed literature.To retrieve relevant literature for inclusion in the analysis, we developed a search string that is a combination of terms related to climate change, impacts of climate change, teaching and research programs, and academic institutions.
The full search string is available in the "Appendix".It was created to embrace the main topics related to this research (inclusion criteria), with a structure of four main blocks.The first is related to terms related to climate change and encompasses variations commonly used in the literature such as 'global warming' , 'climate variability' , etc.The second block of terms is related to 'extreme events' , while the third brings some practices of universities such as education, teaching, training, curricula, research, etc.Finally, the last section of the search string was created due to the focus selected in this study, which is to understand the perspective of higher education institutions.It is worth considering, however, that the terms chosen might now encompass the totality of possible terms related to climate change since there is a huge variety used throughout the literature.The authors are aware of this issue and brought this discussion as a limitation in the conclusions section.
The initial literature search was conducted on July 18, 2022, and returned 1214 documents.These documents were screened to only include those that show how climate change education and/or research is pursued by universities (exclusion criteria).At the end of the screening process.A total of 794 documents remained in the database and were used for term co-occurrence analysis in VOSviewer.The co-occurrence analysis was done in several steps to ensure obtaining the most accurate outputs.To be more specific, after the initial analysis, we found out many synonyms need to be merged (e.g., 'climate change' and 'climate-change').For this purpose, we developed a thesaurus file and added it to the software.The process was repeated until no synonyms were found in the output.The final output (Fig. 1) is a network of nodes and links, where node size is proportional to the occurrence to frequency (of terms) and link width is proportional to the strength of connections between terms.Closely connected terms form clusters that can be interpreted as major thematic areas that have received relatively more attention in the literature.In this perspective, it was possible to label clusters manually since the number of clusters formed and the terms extracted were manageable.To label the clusters, the authors analysed the relationship of terms of a specific cluster and provided a label representing the discussion embedded in each one of the clusters 24 .These will be further explained in the results section.
In addition to this, we completed the literature review by selecting a set of key case studies regarding four core areas for university engagement, namely (1) research and development, (2) teaching and learning, (3) governance and operations, and (4) civic engagement and community outreach.We performed a literature mapping using the Web of Science database to identify the case studies.This was completed using a general search using Google and recognised case studies implemented by universities in different countries.Relevant case studies were selected by the research team using the following criteria: number of citations, degree of innovation, diversity of knowledge and research areas, geographical diversity, and potential for replication and mainstreaming in other contexts.Four tables were designed with selected examples, which entail a specific set of information, namely the type of climate change work undertaken, the main purpose of the implemented initiative, the name of the participating universities, and the country.Also, to ensure the tracing of the information, the tables contain bibliographical references or web links.This also allows a cross-check of the information and enables readers to obtain further details.
Using this literature mapping approach identified, collected, and analysed the existing literature on specific case studies of interest.This process made it possible to highlight and synthesise key issues from the selected literature, thus providing clear insights into the state of knowledge on key case study topics.Accordingly, literature mapping conceptualised a range of possible future research directions, policy implications, and/or practical recommendations for different stakeholder groups.Crucially, surveying the state of the art in this manner helped the researchers to avoid duplicating previous work, identify areas where further investigation is needed, and

Bibliometric assessment
Figure 1 shows that multiple topics related to climate change adaptation and mitigation have been addressed in the context of higher education.This is evidenced by the diversity of terms in each of the four clusters which can be considered as research strands explored by the literature in the field.The output of the term co-occurrence analysis (Fig. 1) shows that multiple topics related to climate change adaptation and mitigation have been addressed in publications on climate change-related education and/or research activities/programs.The red cluster describes aspects related to general policies aimed at reducing vulnerabilities and enhancing resilience and adaptive capacity, embracing terms related to biodiversity, food systems, and ecosystem services.Studies in this cluster usually discuss the relevance of governance in HEIs to ensure universities' contribution towards reducing their impact, implementing adaptation strategies on climate change vulnerabilities, and fostering sustainable development [25][26][27] .This governance perspective is relevant since it could contribute to the universities' process of ensuring that desired practices are initiated, implemented, and continued by the several stakeholders engaged in the process 28 .This perspective also implies the adaptation policies that aim to assist the universities in assembling their several systems, tackling the university's campus operations, and helping society by producing research on the climate change field, especially related to themes such as ecology, food, and biodiversity.Ecology and biodiversity policies in the context of higher institutions are also discussed, especially in the context of green spaces, generating externalities in the perspective of ecological function and urban communities 29 and fostering the discussion of how to maintain biodiversity in a context of climate change adaptation since many species are constrained by changes in climate 30,31 .This cluster also presents studies on campus as ecosystems, exploring whether humans and the biosphere could be reconnected, enhancing the awareness of how to deal with the biodiversity loss related to climate change 32 .
The yellow cluster is focused on climate and environmental education and risk reduction.This cluster, in particular, focuses on the educational practices of universities and the extent to which they address climate change and environmental challenges [33][34][35][36] .More specifically, it deals with the knowledge and sustainability behaviour of students in the process of educating well-versed agents in climate change aspects and capable of conducting adaptation and mitigation strategies 37,38 .This cluster also reports on integrating disaster reduction for extreme events [39][40][41] , highlighting the significance of disaster risk education and environmental awareness programs to effectively address these challenges 42 .
Studies that belong to the blue cluster, in turn, are mainly focused on assessing the temperature, precipitation, and other aspects of climate change variability [43][44][45] .The relation this cluster has with HEIs is mainly focused on research practices, where research centres contribute to assessing climate change challenges by finding patterns and estimating indicators related, for example, to rainfall, temperature, and extreme events 46,47 .For example, Stefanidis and Alexandridis 48 studied the temporal variability, precipitation trends, and evapotranspiration in two forest regions in Greece.They discussed the drought scenarios and the implications for climate change adaptation.Similarly, Rawat and colleagues 49 analysed the rainfall variability and intensity of long-term monthly rainfall data using the Precipitation Concentration Index, which, according to the authors, could prepare governments for extreme weather events, which are imperative to adaptation to climate change conditions.
Finally, the green cluster is the second in a number of terms and has two main discussion streams.The first one is related to the climate change impact on water resources, land, and soil degradation, and inducing droughts [50][51][52][53][54][55] .The second perspective this cluster highlights is related to the precedents of climate change as well as the adaptation and mitigation strategies to address the challenges related to climate change.For example, there are reports on the potential of organic agricultural systems instead of crop productions using nitrogen-based fertilisers, since it leads to reduced N 2 O emissions [56][57][58][59][60] , the importance of renewable energy production systems 60,61 as well as the industrial and human activities which can contribute to the emission of GHGs and environmental pollution 62 , impacting negatively human health 63,64 .

Cases Research and development
Climate change research has been led since 1896 with Svante Arrhenius founding paper 65 .Since then, the volume of scientific literature on climate change has been increasing rapidly.The total number of articles on climate change exceeds 120 000 up to 2015 66 ; almost 90 000 papers were published between 1991 and 2011 67 .New fields of research have merged over time, often responding to society's needs, such as attribution science, first documented in 2004 68 and included in the IPCC AR5 69 , the study of social health impacts of climate change, the incorporation of traditional ecological knowledge and indigenous perspectives, and generally speaking a growing emphasis on adaptation, including novel approaches like community-based adaptation 70 and participatory action-research [71][72][73][74] .Table 1 presents a set of elected case studies on research institutions.
At the same time, climate change research has become more interdisciplinary and transitioned from individual researchers to research centres, hosted by one or several institutions.It also more often than before involves stakeholders from society, leading to collaborative research initiatives.We illustrate this through examples for all three types of research centres in Canada: single-university-the Prairie Climate Centre, multi-university-the Réseau Inondations InterSectoriel du Québec (RIISQ), collaborative, and Ouranos.Two of the most influential research centers, both in numbers and impact of publications, are the Stockholm Resilience Centre and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, which pioneered ground-breaking work on planetary boundaries, climate tipping points, and exploration of past and future climates in an interdisciplinary perspective [75][76][77][78]  As we wish to demonstrate through the selected research projects below, there is a trend for the development of international, interdisciplinary cross-institution initiatives in climate change research, certainly also favoured by funding agency policies, especially in the research and development sector.Such projects can have a real impact on the ground; however, they need careful scientific and organisational planning in order to be truly successful 79 .Table 2 presents a set of elected case studies on research projects.

Teaching and learning
Equipping graduates with the necessary skills and capabilities required to succeed in both their personal and professional lives is a crucial goal for higher education institutions.In higher education institutions, there are Simultaneously, teachers do not reach a consensus on how these different dimensions are interconnected 80 .Furthermore, there are diverse perspectives on how these matters should be approached within various degree programs and courses, and this can influence students' perceptions of values related to sustainability, ethics, and social responsibility 81 .However, understanding the complexity of climate change may be challenging for students and educators 82 .This could clarify why students' awareness of sustainability issues is not uniform or consistent 83 .However, it also underscores the potential intricacy associated with enhancing awareness of social, economic, and environmental issues among students 84 .From this viewpoint, students should acquire the skills not just to translate innovative ideas into tangible projects but also to effectively integrate environmental, social, and financial goals 85 .
In this regard, it is vital to increase their interest in the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as well as prepare graduates to implement real-life solutions based on sustainability criteria 86 .Against this background, it is necessary not only to identify misconceptions and guarantee a proper understanding of climate change's roots and consequences but also to help students become active and critical citizens capable of facilitating real change.In this context, the integration of SDGs in higher education requires the identification and clarification of educational objectives, as well as the adoption of innovative teaching and learning strategies suitable to transform education 87 .
Table 3 presents a set of selected case studies on teaching and learning.Several studies have addressed the issue of students' perceptions and misconceptions regarding climate change.Some studies have used large samples to explore the drivers of pro-environmental behaviour 88 , but small-group, classroom-based, or program-based studies are also frequent approaches to explore the different ways how students understand climate change [89][90][91] .As mentioned below, defining, and clarifying the required capabilities and the necessary skills to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs in higher education is essential 92 .A growing number of studies have addressed this issue, using different strategies such as comprehensive approaches based on literature review techniques and the use of surveys 87 , as well as small-group studies relying on quantitative and qualitative techniques 93 .In addition to this, non-conventional, student-centered teaching and learning techniques are becoming increasingly popular in higher education due to their potential to help students acquire multiple learning outcomes 94 .Methodologies such as problem-based learning [95][96][97] , inquiry-based learning 98 , gamification 99,100 , or participatory case studies 101 , are examples of innovative strategies to promote education for sustainable development.

Governance, operations, and institutional practice
All around the world, universities are increasingly adopting carbon-neutral goals and practices 102,103 .This is reflected by the growing number of higher education providers that are aiming to become fully carbon-neutral institutions (through low-carbon operational practices) while at the same time innovating their curricula to better educate students (about the benefits of carbon neutrality) 1,12,104 .With this twin strategy, universities are decreasing their own "carbon footprint" (by lowering institution-linked greenhouse gasses) and increasing the wider community's "carbon brain print" (by teaching about low-carbon living) 102,105 .The literature, therefore, categorises "governance" into matters about the immediate institutional governance and operational practices (of the universities themselves) and their secondary flow-on function of informing and influencing the governance and operational practices of other key stakeholders beyond their organisational confines (e.g., local communities, national governments, and the corporate sector) 106 .Table 3 shows a set of selected case studies addressing areas of governance, operations, and institutional practice.In terms of facilitating institution-wide carbon neutrality, universities are implementing a raft of strategies that may include private-private solar system partnerships 102 , renewables, electric vehicles, tree plantation and enhanced energy efficiency 107 , remote sensing, and campus tree surveys to maximise biosequestration and campus-based ecosystem services 108 , campus community gardening to enhance CSR and institutional sustainability practice 109 , in addition to a range of other priority actions that may achieve net zero carbon buildings and (Paris-aligned) carbon reduction targets 102,110 .Furthermore, many universities have announced institutional commitments to divest their endowments from fossil fuel holdings while recalibrating their operational practices in alignment with the UN SDGs [111][112][113] .These actions may have image-enhancing effects 114 .Pertinent performance metrics are captured by the Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings, an annual process that assesses universities against the UN SDGs.In its most recent fourth edition, THE has ranked a total of 1406 universities from 106 countries/regions 115 .Finally, additional information on the strategies, operations, and budgetary plans of higher education institutions (HEIs) regarding their transition to net zero or carbon neutrality might not be found in academic publications but could be available in "grey literature" produced by the HEIs themselves, focusing on their performance and strategic vision.Table 4 includes a set of selected case studies on governance, operations, and institutional practice.

Civic engagement and community outreach
The crucial role that Universities must play is also reflected by the increasing efforts from higher education institutions to foster civic engagement and expand their community outreach.Universities play a vital role in fostering civic commitment and community outreach within their localities.By leveraging their resources, expertise, and diverse talent pool, universities can initiate impactful initiatives that address community needs and promote positive social change.One effective approach is to establish university-community partnerships, where faculty, students, and staff collaborate with local organizations and residents to identify pressing issues and co-create sustainable solutions.Additionally, universities can integrate service-learning programs into their curricula, encouraging students to actively engage with the community while applying their academic knowledge to real-world challenges.Offering workshops, seminars, and public events on relevant topics further encourages dialogue and knowledge-sharing between the institution and the community.By actively involving themselves in the community's fabric, universities can contribute to the betterment of society, nurture socially responsible citizens, and empower students to become agents of positive transformation.In this context, cooperation among stakeholders led to the concept of "co-creation for sustainability", which deals with relevant notions and innovative strategies for transformative research 116 , such as participatory action research (PAR) and other community-based research strategies, the creation of urban living labs, and the use of innovative strategies for civic cooperation such as student service learning 117 .Table 5 shows a set of selected successful case studies where cooperation between universities and local stakeholders proved to contribute to facilitating civic engagement/community outreach in their local communities.Against this background, PAR, a community-based technique in which beneficiaries take an active role in research 118 , could be used for multiple purposes to deal with the challenges generated by climate change, such as improving climate planning processes 119 , increase engagement of different stakeholders and identify the scope for developing the adaptive capability of local communities 120 , monitor environmental risks and damage 121 , or strengthening climate justice 122 .Other forms of transformative research rely on multidisciplinary teams formed by diverse stakeholders www.nature.com/scientificreports/engaged in evaluating knowledge and providing technical advice 123 or fostering private-public partnerships to boost engineering solutions 124 , among other examples.In line with this multi-stakeholder cooperation, universities and other higher education institutions play a crucial role in creating 'urban living labs' , understood as spaces where research is used for promoting innovation and collaboration to tackle social, economic, and environmental needs [125][126][127] .Finally, experiential learning strategies such as student service learning are becoming increasingly popular in higher education 128 , mainly because of their potential to foster critical thinking as well as promote social and civic engagement among students and enhance cooperation between different social actors 125,129 .

Conclusions
As this paper has outlined, universities can provide substantial contributions to both consumption and emissions globally.They also have the potential to play a key role in efforts to drive sustainability, both locally and globally.
As this paper has shown, many universities are switching to green operations that involve sustainability in campus activities such as water and energy consumption, waste production, and personal and institutional mobility, all of which have connections with climate change.Improvements may be pursued in respect of the implementation of activities such as smart waste management, sustainable transportation systems, and the more sustainable maintenance of existing buildings.Since daily campus operations result in the usage of large amounts of energy, it is important that higher education institutions that currently use fossil-fuel-based energy -which results in greater greenhouse gas releases-switch towards renewable energy use.
The production of waste also contributes greatly to global carbon emissions, and universities produce a significant amount of waste.Therefore, it is important to put in place appropriate strategies to manage waste and ideally prevent it, especially food waste since a large percentage of food wastage is generated at university canteens.There are ample examples of successfully-run recycling programmes, which may mobilise staff and students in a meaningful way.Some may not only reuse waste but also produce energy from it.Moreover, a further promising area is the use of cleaner transportation methods, as a tool to reduce the carbon footprint of higher education institutions.This may involve the use of campuswide shuttle services, carpooling, or the use of bicycles, by both staff and students.There is also much scope to reduce greenhouse emissions from travel.Whereas this is an essential part of universities´ operations -since both staff and students regularly use travel as part of their mobility and to attend conferences.Here, adequate solutions are also needed, for instance, the optimisation of trips and routes, and greater use of online facilities for those events whose physical attendance is not essential.
Higher education institutions can take several steps to address climate change.Such steps range from curriculum reform to creating new research initiatives and collaborations.Some of the recommendations that may further the cause of a greater engagement of universities on climate change include: 1. Curriculum Reform: as it is shown in Table 3, there are few studies focusing on climate change aspects in curriculums, indicating a large opportunity for research.In this sense, higher education institutions should review their curricula to ensure that current and future generations of students are educated in the fundamentals of climate science (in technical subjects) and the global effects of climate change (in non-technical ones).Aligned with the first recommendation, institutions should promote educational campaigns and public awareness initiatives to educate students and the public on the importance of reducing their carbon footprint.The case studies on civic engagement and community outreach shown in Table 5 evidence interesting examples of ways of implementing this kind of initiative for the public in general.As presented in the literature, the complexity and inter-transdisciplinary character of sustainability inhibits its understanding to some extent, but concrete examples of carbon footprint reduction can be an important approach to address this challenge.3. Research: There are relevant challenges highlighted in the literature for inserting climate change in university programmes, evidencing the need for studies to deeply analyse these difficulties and propose manners for overcoming them.In addition, the existing research institutions, initiatives, and/or programs focusing on climate change-related aspects (Tables 1 and 4) can play a key role in enhancing the efforts in the field and institutions worldwide should encourage and fund research initiatives that seek to understand the causes and effects of climate change, develop solutions and technologies, and identify innovative strategies for addressing the climate crisis.4. Collaboration: In the same line of reasoning of the previous recommendation, institutions should establish and enhance partnerships with local governments, non-profit organizations, and other stakeholders to collaborate on initiatives to mitigate climate change.5. Renewable Energy: Another evidenced source of improvement opportunity regarding climate change is that institutions should invest in renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, and geothermal, to reduce their emissions and promote sustainability.They should, in other words, practice what they preach.6. Green Buildings: Aligned with the previous recommendation, institutions should strive to create and maintain sustainable buildings, such as LEED-certified buildings, to reduce their environmental impact.In Table 4, examples of case studies on governance, operations, and institutional practice are evidenced, which can be used as a starting point for further development.
This paper has some limitations.The first is related to the sample.The study analysed 1214 documents that only considered how climate change education and/or research is pursued by universities, without focusing on other parameters.Secondly, only 794 documents remained in the database and were used for term co-occurrence analysis in VOSviewer.In addition, the case studies focused on four areas, namely research and development, teaching and learning, governance and operations, and civic engagement and community outreach, and did not consider elements such as collaboration with external organisations.Finally, the authors used the main terms to create the search string, and because of the diversity of the field, it was not possible to track all the possible terms related to each one of the four dimensions.However, this last limitation could be an opportunity for future studies as new terms that are not commonly used till the date of this research might start to gain attention and start to be adopted.Despite these limitations, the paper provides a welcome addition to the literature since it documents and promotes the current emphasis given by universities to climate change.
As to future trends on climate change and universities, there is a perceived need for greater engagement.Universities are important hubs of innovation and knowledge creation, with a comprehensive body of information and experience, which can significantly help to address the challenges of climate change, and across several subjects and contexts.As such, more universities are expected to intensify their efforts in research, education, and outreach activities related to climate change.
Moreover, universities should become more involved in the public policy and advocacy sphere, advocating for solutions to climate change and engaging in climate-related projects.This involvement is expected to increase as universities become more involved in the global climate change discourse.

Figure 1 .
Figure 1.Results of the term co-occurrence analysis.

Table 1 .
Case studies of research institutions.

Table 2 .
Case studies of research projects.

Table 3 .
Case studies on teaching and learning.

Table 4 .
Case studies on governance, operations, and institutional practice.

Table 5 .
Case studies on civic engagement and community outreach.